Method and apparatus for communicating with one of plural devices associated with a single telephone number during a disaster and disaster recovery

ABSTRACT

A system for (and a method of) selectively establishing communication with one of plural devices associated with a single telephone number during a disaster or disaster recovery period. The method can offer disaster recovery to an enterprise depending upon its size, financial well-being and desired capabilities. For example, the enterprise has the option of owning or renting all of the equipment required so that it may perform disaster recovery on its own and with little outside intervention. The enterprise may own some or none of the necessary equipment and contract with a service bureau so that the bureau provides recovery equipment when needed. The system also provides for roll call, priority preemption and seamless switching services to and from circuit and packet communication devices.

This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10/440,090,filed May 19, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,292,858 which is acontinuation-in-part (C-I-P) of application Ser. No. 09/593,543 filed onJun. 14, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,305,079 which claims priority fromprovisional application Ser. Nos. 60/139,498, filed Jun. 14, 1999, and60/185,070 filed Feb. 25, 2000, all of which are hereby incorporated byreference in their entireties.

BACKGROUND

It has become relatively common for individuals to possess a number ofdifferent devices through which they communicate. For example, a personmay have a home telephone, a wireless telephone, a pager and an officetelephone. As the population becomes increasingly mobile, making contactwith a person through one of these communication devices has become moredifficult.

Call forwarding is one method of addressing this problem. Certaintelephone systems allow users to enter another number to which a call isforwarded if not answered by a specified number of rings. This shouldallow an individual with multiple telephone devices to forward the callto such devices until the telephone at which the individual is locatedfinally rings. However, if several telephones are involved, thisapproach becomes complicated. Moreover, it requires the calling party toremain on the line for a significant period of time if the call is to beforwarded multiple times. Furthermore, it is necessary that callforwarding capabilities exist on each of the individual's telephones. Inaddition, this approach requires that all telephones involved bereprogrammed each time an individual desires to initiate callforwarding. A significant drawback to this forwarding strategy is that,in each leg of the forwarded call, the calling party is terminated onthe last device or network in the chain. It follows that the finalnumber in the forwarding scheme is responsible for all availableenhanced services or voice mail available to the caller. Accordingly,although a call may have been initially placed to an office telephoneequipped with voice mail and/or operator assist, all such enhancedservices of the corporate network are lost once the call is forwardedoff the corporate PBX (e.g., to the user's wireless telephone).

Travel can also exacerbate the difficulty of establishing communicationwith an individual having access to multiple telephone devices. Uponchecking into a hotel, the telephone in a traveler's hotel room becomesavailable as yet another potential means of contact. Unfortunately, thisforces a calling party to decide whether to attempt to contact thetraveler through his or her room telephone or other telephone device(e.g., wireless telephone or pager). If the traveler does not answer thecalled telephone, the calling party then must decide whether to leave amessage (unaware of when, or if, the message will be retrieved) orinstead attempt to reach the traveler via his or her other telephone.Likewise, if the traveler is expecting an important call but is unsurewhether it will be placed to his room telephone or wireless telephone,the traveler may feel compelled to remain within his room until the callhas been received. In addition, if the traveler's wireless telephonedoes not support certain types of long distance calls (e.g., to variousforeign countries), the traveler may be able to place certain types ofcalls only from his or her hotel room.

The office telephone is the primary point of contact of most businesspeople. Typically, corporations invest significantly in their officetelephone infrastructure, which often includes voice mail, paging andunified messaging systems. In addition, most corporations havenegotiated contracts with their telephone carriers (e.g., local and longdistance carriers) to ensure they obtain the lowest possible rates forcalls placed via their corporate network. However, because the corporateworkforce is becoming increasingly mobile, more business people areusing wireless telephones to conduct their business when they are out ofthe office. This has resulted in corporations spending a larger portionof their telecommunications budget on wireless communications, with farless favorable negotiated rates than the rates of their corporatenetwork. In addition, wireless communication systems often lack theenhanced conveniences (e.g., interoffice voice mail, direct extensiondialing, etc.) that corporate users have come to expect in the officeenvironment.

A solution to the aforementioned problems would be to allow wirelesstelephony devices (e.g., wireless telephones or pagers) to access anoffice telephone system as though they were desktop telephones connectedto the company's PBX. It is desirable to incorporate wireless devicesinto the PBX network so that users may place and receive telephone callsusing the office PBX telephone system even though they are at a remotelocation (e.g., out of the office). This would allow the enhancedconveniences of today's PBX networks (e.g., interoffice voice mail,direct extension dialing, etc.) to be available on wirelessdevices—something which is desperately needed in today's society.

There have been recent attempts to incorporate wireless telephones intoPBX networks. One system provided by Ericsson, requires the creation ofa mini-cellular network within the confines of the enterprise. Acellular switching unit, unique wireless telephones and an auxiliaryserver are required to route inbound telephone calls to a wirelesshandset serving as a remote office telephone.

An in-building wireless system has been proposed by Nortel Networks.This system requires the wiring of pico-cells throughout theenterprise's building. The system routes inbound telephone calls tospecialized wireless telephones serving as additional office PBXtelephones. The wireless telephones cannot be used as conventionalstandard wireless telephones until they leave the premises.

These systems allow inbound calls to be routed to an office telephoneand a wireless telephone, but they are not without their shortcomings.For example, each system requires specialized cellular equipment andwireless handsets. Moreover, the systems only use the wirelesstelephones for inbound telephone calls. In addition, these systemscannot use the wireless telephone as a conventional wireless telephone(i.e., not part of the enterprise's PBX network) within the building.

A major disaster causing an enterprise's office telephone infrastructureor PBX network to become destroyed or inoperable may permanently damagethe manner in which the enterprise communicates internally and with theoutside world during the disaster and may also damage the manner inwhich the enterprise conducts its business after the disaster. Forexample, an enterprise, its employees and telephone infrastructure maybe located in one or several large office buildings. The infrastructurehas previously established direct inward dial (DID) telephone numbers inwhich the outside world may communicate with the employees, as well asinternal extensions by which the employees may communicate with eachother. All of the DID telephone numbers, extensions, and voice mailboxes, etc. likely will be wiped out if the PBX network gets destroyed(e.g., if the building housing the PBX network is destroyed due toterrorists, natural disaster or other occurrence).

Currently, in the wake of such a disaster, there is no way for thetelephone company to reroute all of the enterprise's DID telephonenumbers to another telephone infrastructure or PBX network. This meansthat during the disaster there will be no way for the outside world tocommunicate with the enterprise, hampering disaster recovery efforts.Presuming that the enterprise can continue to operate after such adisaster (e.g., relocate to another location, such as another branch ofthe enterprise), future business still will be hampered because theoutside world can no longer reach the enterprise via the thousands ofpreviously established DID numbers. At best, the DID numbers can beterminated at voice mail boxes, but the employees will never be able toreceive calls at the numbers again. Moreover, the destruction of the PBXnetwork results in the destruction of the enterprise's internalextensions, which impedes the employees' ability to contact each otherand perform daily operations. These problems will occur whether theenterprise's PBX network incorporates wireless telephones or not. Thus,there is a desire and need for a telecommunications system that canallow communications to continue through the enterprise's DID numbersand internal extensions during a disaster and during disaster recovery.

There is also a desire and need to determine the status of theenterprise's employees, portions of the physical enterprise (e.g., itswest wing), and portions of the enterprise network itself during varioussituations. This need exists, for example, during emergency situationssuch as a disaster where it becomes necessary to determine whetheremployees have lived through the disaster, whether the employees haveexited the premises and are safe, or whether the employees have becometrapped or are in need of medical assistance. Determining the status ofemployees and portions of the building during the progression of theemergency enables the enterprise to dispatch emergency personnel to theappropriate locations within the enterprise. This same status would alsobe useful in non-emergency situations where the monitoring of employees,building, or telecommunications network is required for some enterpriserelated reason.

In certain enterprise networks such as, for example, a military orgovernment enterprise network, there exists a precedence protocol thatprovides higher ranking officers or government personnel the ability tobreak into or preempt an existing telephone call based on the prioritylevel of the officer/government official. Often times, this is requiredduring an emergency or other situation in which the higher rankingofficial must communicate with a particular individual and cannot waituntil the individual completes the current call. This is sometimesreferred to as MLPP, but is referred to herein as “priority preemption.”Priority preemption, however, is limited to the telephones connected tothe enterprise network, which limits the ability of the higher rankingofficial to contact the appropriate individual (who may also be a highranking officer or government official) when the need arises. It isdesirable to extend the priority preemption capability to wireless andremote devices so that priority users are able to preempt existingcommunications and communicate with certain individuals even though thatindividual is using a wireless telephone or other remote device.

Further, certain governmental enterprise networks need to besufficiently flexible to maintain communication while protecting itsworkforce from threatened harm. For example, threats lodged against aparticular facility must be taken seriously, and employees at thatfacility may be evacuated or advised not to come into the facility.Additionally, it is sometimes of benefit to spoof a telephone number, orproject a different telephone number to the recipient of the telephonecall than the actual number being called from.

SUMMARY

A system for (and a method of) selectively establishing communicationwith one of plural devices associated with a single telephone numberduring a disaster or disaster recovery period. The method can offerdisaster recovery to an enterprise depending upon its size, financialwell-being and desired capabilities. For example, the enterprise has theoption of owning or renting all of the equipment required so that it mayperform disaster recovery on its own and with little outsideintervention. The enterprise may own some or none of the necessaryequipment and contract with a service bureau so that the bureau providesrecovery equipment when needed.

The system also provides the ability to determine the status ofemployees and portions of the building during the progression of theemergency, employee movement and recovery events. This enables theenterprise to dispatch emergency personnel to the appropriate locationswithin the enterprise.

The system also provides a priority preemption capability to wirelessand remote devices associated with the enterprise network's wirelessconnection unit so that priority users are able to preempt existingcommunications and communicate with certain individuals even though thatindividual is using a wireless telephone or other remote device.

The system also provides for the seamless switching between circuit(e.g., cellular) and packet (e.g., voice over IP) services based on aproximity of the service and user preferences.

In one embodiment of the invention, the method providestelecommunication services to an enterprise operating a firsttelecommunication network connected to a first wireless connection unit.The method comprises providing a second wireless connection unit;copying a first database of the first wireless connection unit into asecond database in the second wireless connection unit, the seconddatabase comprising a plurality of telephone extensions each associatedwith a first communication device connected to the firsttelecommunication network and a second communication device; and,servicing a communication destined for an extension of the firsttelecommunication network via the second wireless connection unit.

In another embodiment, the method provides telecommunication services toan enterprise operating a first telecommunication network. The methodcomprises the steps of providing a wireless connection unit connected tothe first telecommunication network; maintaining a database of telephoneextensions of the first telecommunication network, each extension beingassociated with a first communication device connected to the firsttelecommunication network and a second communication device; and,servicing a communication destined for an extension of the firsttelecommunication network via the wireless connection unit.

In yet another embodiment, the method comprises providing a firstwireless connection unit connected to the first telecommunicationnetwork and providing a second wireless connection unit connected to asecond telecommunication network. The method further comprises copying afirst database of the first wireless connection unit into a seconddatabase in the second wireless connection unit, the second databasecomprising a plurality of telephone extensions each associated with afirst communication device connected to the first telecommunicationnetwork and a second communication device; and, servicing acommunication destined for an extension of the first telecommunicationnetwork via the second wireless connection unit.

In another embodiment, the invention performs a method that determines astatus of users of an enterprise telecommunication network. The methodcomprises the steps of simultaneously broadcasting a request for statusmessage to a plurality of different communication devices associatedwith telephone numbers of each user of the enterprise network andinputting responses from at least some of the devices. The methoddetermines the status of the users from the input responses.

In yet another embodiment, the invention performs a method of preemptinga wireless communication on a first device associated with a telephoneextension of an enterprise telecommunications network. The communicationincludes a first user associated with the extension and the methodcomprises the steps of inputting at a wireless connection unit apriority preemption signal from a second device and determining at thewireless connection unit a priority of a second user sending thepriority preemption signal and a priority of the first user. If it isdetermined that the wireless communications can be preempted, the methodinterrupts the wireless communication and creates a wirelesscommunication between the first and second devices.

In a further embodiment, the invention performs a method of switching atelephone call from a circuit communication network to a data packetcommunication network, where the call is associated with a telephoneextension of an enterprise communication network. The method detectsthat a wireless device associated with the extension can handle the callon the packet communication network; determines whether the call shouldbe switched to the packet communication network based on userpreferences associated with the extension; and, if it is determined thatthe call should be switched to the packet communication network, bridgesthe call to the packet communication network.

In a further embodiment, the invention performs a method of switching atelephone call from a data packet communication network to a circuitcommunication network, where the call is associated with a telephoneextension of an enterprise communication network. The method comprisesthe steps of detecting that a wireless device associated with theextension can handle the call on the circuit communication network;determining whether the call should be switched to the circuitcommunication network based on user preferences associated with theextension; and, if it is determined that the call should be switched tothe circuit communication network, bridging the call to the circuitcommunication network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication system constructed inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2. illustrates a wireless connection unit in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary inboundstation-to-station call processing performed in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary inbound direct inwarddialing (DID) call processing performed in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary remote outbound callprocessing performed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication system constructed inaccordance with another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary disaster recoveryprocessing performed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary database replicationprocessing performed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary remote outbound callprocessing performed in accordance with another embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 10 illustrates in flow chart form exemplary hosted servicesprocessing performed in accordance with another embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 11 illustrates in flow chart form exemplary hosted servicesprocessing performed in accordance with another embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 12 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication system constructed inaccordance with yet another embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 13 a and 13 b illustrate the conventional calling tree method.

FIGS. 14 a and 14 b illustrate a roll call method performed inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates exemplary priority preemption processing performedby an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates exemplary seamless switching processing performed byan embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments and applications of the invention will now bedescribed. Other embodiments may be realized and structural or logicalchanges may be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing fromthe spirit or scope of the invention. Although the preferred embodimentsdisclosed herein have been particularly described as applied to abusiness or office environment, it should be readily apparent that theinvention may be embodied for any use or application having the same orsimilar problems.

The invention is more fully understood with reference to the preferredembodiments depicted in FIGS. 1-5. A first exemplary embodiment of theinvention is discussed and illustrated with reference to itsimplementation within an office building or other enterpriseestablishment. In an office, for example, personnel are assigned tooffices (or cubicles) with each office having an associated telephone.The office telephones are typically connected to a PBX, exchange, orother call processing infrastructure. The PBX allows each officetelephone to have its own telephone extension and a direct inward dial(DID) telephone number. As known in the art, a telephone extension istypically a three or four digit telephone number wherestation-to-station (i.e., office-to-office) calls can be placed bydialing the three or four digit extension. This is commonly referred toas direct extension dialing. As also known in the art, a DID telephonenumber allows external calls (i.e., calls initiated outside of theoffice PBX) to be placed directly to the office telephone.

The invention is not to be limited to any particular environment. Theinvention may be implemented, for example, in a hotel, boarding house,dormitory, apartment, or other commercial or residential establishment,where individuals are assigned to a unique extension or DID telephonenumber. The term “office” as used herein encompasses a singular room orspace within a business or other enterprise, or a hotel room or similarfacility. The term “user” as used herein encompasses office personnel,hotel guests or other individuals associated with a telephone extensionand DID telephone number.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication system 10 constructedin accordance with an embodiment of the invention. As will be discussedbelow, the system 10 provides for a full integration of remote telephonydevices, such as a wireless telephone 70, into an office or hotel PBX orother communications network. In doing so, the system 10 can selectivelyestablish communications with one of a plurality of telephony devicesassociated with a particular telephone extension or DID telephonenumber. Moreover, the system 10 will allow remote devices such as thewireless telephone 70 to perform as a fully functional standard officetelephone 12 a, 12 b for both inbound and outbound communications. Thatis, a remote device will be able to use features of the office network(e.g., direct extension dialing, corporate dialing plan, etc.) eventhough the device is not within the confines of the office or notdirectly connected to the office PBX. The system also allows thewireless telephone 70 to operate as an independent wireless telephone ifso desired. That is, the wireless telephone 70 may receive calls placedto its (non-office) DID telephone number even though the system 10routes PBX calls to the telephone 70.

The system 10 as particularly illustrated herein includes a conventionaloffice PBX network 11. The PBX network 11 may include a plurality ofstandard telephones 12 a, 12 b respectively connected to a conventionalPBX 14 via communication lines 18 a, 18 b. The PBX 14, which may be anycommercially available one such as a Meridian 1 PBX produced by NortelNetworks, is connected to a calling network such as a public switchedtelephone network (PSTN) 16 by a primary rate interface (PRI) connection20 or other suitable communication line or medium. The standardtelephones 12 a, 12 b can be any digital or analog telephone or othercommunication device known in the art. As illustrated in FIG. 1, thefirst telephone 12 a is a digital telephone while the second telephone12 b is an analog telephone. For clarity purposes only, two telephones12 a, 12 b are illustrated in FIG. 1, but it should be appreciated thatany number or combination of telephones or other communication devicescan be supported by the system 10. Moreover, although it is desirable touse digital telephones, the invention is not to be limited to theparticular type of telephone used in the system 10.

The PBX 14 is coupled to a wireless connection unit (WC) 30. The WC 30is connected to the PBX 14 in this embodiment by a PRI connection 22 orother suitable communication medium. The WC 30 is also connected to aPSTN 54 by a PRI connection or other suitable digital communicationmedium. The illustrated PRI connection between the WC 30 and the PSTN 54includes a first PRI connection 32, a channel service unit (CSU) 34, anda second PRI connection 36. As known in the art, a CSU is a mechanismfor connecting a computer (or other device) to a digital medium thatallows a customer to utilize their own equipment to retime andregenerate incoming signals. It should be appreciated that theillustrated connection between the WC 30 and the PSTN 54 is one of manysuitable connections. Accordingly, the invention should not be limitedto the illustrated connection. The WC 30 is one of the mechanisms thatallows the integration of remote devices (e.g., wireless telephone 70)into the PBX network 11 and its operation will be described below inmore detail.

The WC 30 is preferably connected to a local area network (LAN) 40 by anappropriate communication medium 38. Although a LAN 40 is illustrated,it should be appreciated that any other network could be used. Aplurality of computers (e.g., 42 a, 42 b) may be respectively connectedto the LAN 40 by any appropriate communication lines 44 a, 44 b. Thecomputers 42 a, 42 b can be used by network administrators or others tomaintain WC 30 and other portions of the system 10. The LAN 40 may alsobe connected to the Internet 50 by a suitable communication medium 48. Afirewall 46 may be used for security purposes. In a preferredembodiment, Internet 50 can be used to allow a remote administrationdevice 52 (e.g., a personal computer) to perform remote administrationof WC 30 by office personnel or other authorized users of the system 10.Remote administration will allow office personnel to set userpreferences for particular telephone extensions. Thus, each officetelephone extension and associated remote device is individuallyconfigurable.

PSTN 54 is connected in this embodiment to a commercial wireless carrier(or other carrier not co-located with the system 10) by a wirelessswitch 58 or other wireless carrier equipment by an appropriatecommunication medium 56. The wireless switch 58 is connected to at leastone antenna 60 (by an appropriate communication medium 62) fortransmitting signals 64 to a wireless device, such as the wirelesstelephone 70. The wireless device could also be a pager, personaldigital assistant (PDA), landline telephone, facsimile machine or otherwired/wireless communication device. It may desirable for the wirelessdevice to be capable of handling both (or either) digital and analogcommunication signals. It should be noted that any type of wirelesscommunication protocol (or a combination of different protocols), suchas TDMA, CDMA, GSM, AMPS, MSR, iDEN, WAP, etc., could be used.

It should be appreciated that the WC 30 is connected to a wirelesscarrier through a PSTN 54 and not by unique hardware or an in-officecellular network. As a result, WC 30 only has to interface withconventional components, such as the PBX 14 and PSTN 54. Thus, thesystem is substantially technology independent. Moreover, specialwireless devices are not required, which allows the remote device tofunction in its conventional manner (e.g., as a separate wirelesstelephone) and as part of the PBX network 11 (if so desired).

The WC 30 and the PBX 14 may also be connected to an accounting/billingsystem 80. The billing system 80 may also be connected to the LAN 40 sothat system administrators may access the contents of the billing system80. By incorporating a billing system 80 into the system 10, it ispossible to obtain immediate billing information for calls placedto/from the wireless telephone 70 or other remote device. This immediatebilling feature is not present in other PBX or enterprise networks andis particularly useful for corporate environments such as law firms andgovernment agencies, and hotel environments, where up to date billinginformation is essential.

As noted above, the WC 30 allows for the full integration of remotedevices into the PBX network 11. In a preferred embodiment, WC 30 is aprocessor-based stand-alone unit capable of handling communicationsdirected to the PBX network 11. In a preferred embodiment, WC 30 iscomposed of one or more processors generically represented by processormodule 310 executing one or more computer programs stored in one or morememory units generically represented by memory module 320, which iscoupled to processor module 310 via bus 330, as shown in FIG. 2. Memorymodule 320 also contains one or more databases and other processingmemory used during the overall operation of system 10, as will bedescribed below. Receiving and transmitting modules 340, 350,respectively, which are coupled to processor module 310 and memorymodule 320 via bus 330, are employed to receive and transmit informationto the PBX and PSTN during call processing, as well as receiving andtransmitting other information such as administrative information.

The modules (310, 320, 330, 340, 350) making up WC 30 may be implementedusing any known hardware or software devices. For example, in oneembodiment, workload performed by receiving and transmitting modules340, 350, as well as some of the processing functions of processormodule 310 of WC 30 are implemented using one or more conventionalprocessor-based programmable telephony interface circuit cards used tointerface WC 30 with PBX 14 and the PSTN. They are programmed to performthe conventional telephony services required to place and receive calls,as well as programmed to perform the unique call processing functionsdescribed below. The WC 30 preferably contain a database of officeextension numbers (also referred to herein as PBX extensions) and DIDtelephone numbers associated with each existing PBX extension. Thedatabase will be stored on a computer readable storage medium, which maybe part of (e.g., in memory module 320) or connected to the WC 30. Thedatabase may also contain a wireless connection/PBX extension(hereinafter referred to as a “WC-PBX extension”) and one or more remotedevice telephone numbers associated with each PBX extension. In thisembodiment, software running on the telephony cards interfaces with thedatabase to perform the various call processing functions discussedbelow.

In this embodiment, the PBX 14 contains a coordinated dialing plan (CDP)steering table. The CDP steering table will be stored and retrieved froma computer readable storage medium, which may be part of or connected tothe PBX 14. The CDP steering table directs the routing of some or allPBX extensions to the WC 30 over the PRI 22 between the WC 30 and thePBX 14. In addition, the CDP steering table of the PBX 14 directs therouting of all WC-PBX extensions received from the WC 30 to theappropriate office telephone.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, processormodule 310 executes one or more programs stored in memory module 320 toprocess calls received through PBX 14 or PSTN. FIGS. 3, 4 and 5illustrate some of the basic call processing events which WC 30 may beprogrammed to handle in accordance with exemplary embodiments of theinvention. As illustrated in FIG. 3, when an incoming station-to-stationcall (i.e., a direct extension call from one internal telephone deviceto another internal device) is received by the PBX 14 for an existingPBX extension (step 102), the PBX 14 looks up the PBX extension in theCDP steering table (step 104) to determine where the call should berouted. Based on the CDP steering table the call to the PBX extension isrouted to the WC 30 instead of directly to an office telephone 12 a(step 106).

As is known in the art, the incoming call will have automatic numberidentification (ANI) and dialed number identification service (DNIS)information. The ANI identifies the telephone number of the callingparty and is traditionally used for “caller ID.” DNIS identifies thetelephone number of the called party. The WC 30 reads the ANI/DNISinformation from the incoming call to obtain the DNIS information (step108). As noted above, the WC 30 has assigned a new WC-PBX extension toeach existing PBX extension. The WC-PBX extension, routing information,and user preferences are obtained by using the DNIS information(identifying the PBX extension) as an index into the WC 30 database(step 110). Routing information will include any additional remotetelephone numbers or voice mail box numbers, or other identificationnumbers of communication devices associated with the PBX extension.

At step 112, the WC 30 out pulses the PBX 14 through the PRI connection22 between the WC 30 and PBX 14 with the WC-PBX extension obtained instep 110. This causes the PBX 14 to ring the associated office telephone(e.g., telephone 12 a). At the same time (if desired), the WC 30attempts to contact one or more alternative communication devices (e.g.,by out dialing a remote telephone number via the PRI connection betweenthe WC 30 and the PSTN 54). In such embodiment, the station-to-stationcall is thus routed to both the office telephone and also to at leastone remote device 70 simultaneously or substantially simultaneously (oras determined by the user preferences). It should be noted that theillustrated processing 100 is one example of how an incomingstation-to-station call may be handled. Individual user preferences mayalter the way the call is processed. It should be noted that in apreferred embodiment, the WC 30 is dialing the remote device telephonenumber and out pulsing the PBX 14 with the WC-PBX extension. This givesthe WC 30 control over the connections to the office telephone 12 a andthe remote device 70. It should also be noted that the WC 30 can outdial several remote numbers, if so desired, and that the inventionshould not be limited to the dialing of one remote number.

At step 114, it is determined if the current ring count (i.e., number ofrings) exceeds the maximum ring count defined by the user. Since the WC30 is controlling the call at this time it can track the number ofrings. If the ring count exceeds the maximum ring count, then the WC 30(if desired) forwards the call to the enterprise's voice mail (step120). If the ring count does not exceed the maximum ring count, the WC30 determines if the call is answered at the PBX extension (step 116).The PBX 14 will issue an off-hook message to the WC 30 if theappropriate office telephone is answered. If it is determined that thecall is answered at the PBX extension, the WC 30 drops the call's pathto the remote device via the PSTN 54 and maintains the path to the PBX14 (step 122).

In a preferred embodiment, it may be desired that the call to the remotedevice is actually answered by the user and not by a service of thewireless carrier. In known systems, wireless carriers often answer acall if there is a bad connection, the wireless channels are overloadedor for other reasons (such as initiating a wireless carrier's answeringservice). When the wireless carrier answers the call in thesesituations, the call would appear to WC 30 as an “answered call” even ifthe remote user did not answer the call itself.

One way to distinguish a user answered call from a wireless serviceanswered call is to prompt the user to transmit an acknowledgementsignal such as a dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tone to the WC 30 viathe keypad of the remote device. Upon detecting the answered call, WC 30can send a voice message instructing the user to “press 1 to completethe call or press 2 to send caller to voice mail.” If the DTMF tone isnot received, then the WC 30 presumes that the call was answered by thewireless carrier, or that the user does not want to answer the callwhich the WC 30 treats as an unanswered call. If at step 118, it isdetermined that the remote device was answered by the user, the WC 30drops the WC-PBX extension path to the PBX and initiates the connectionbetween the calling party and the remote device (step 124). If the callis not answered at the remote device in step 118, process flow returnsto step 114 to check whether the ring count has exceeded the maximumring count. It should be noted that, if desired, the WC 30 can forwardan unanswered call to voice mail or play an interactive menu to thecalling party, which allows the calling party to page the called party,leave a voice mail message or to transfer to an operator.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the databaseof WC 30 may also contain numerous system-defined user access rights anduser modifiable preferences, which can alter the call processing of theinvention. An office administrator may use the network computers 42 a,42 b or a remote administration device 52 to set user access rights andpriorities (example discussed below with respect to outbound callprocessing 300 illustrated in FIG. 5). The user may use the remoteadministration device 52 to set numerous user preferences. It isdesirable that a Web-based or graphical user interface be used so thatthe user can easily access and set user preferences. The networkcomputers 42 a, 42 b (or remote device 52) may also be used by the userif so desired.

User preferences may include how the user associated with a particularPBX extension wants incoming calls to be routed. For example, the usercan request that incoming calls be routed to the office telephone andone or more remote devices simultaneously. The user instead can requestthat an incoming call be routed to the office telephone first, thenafter a user-defined number of rings, the remote device and eventuallysent to the PBX voice mail. Alternatively, the user can request that anincoming call be routed to the remote device first, then the officetelephone, and subsequently to the PBX voice mail. The user can requestthat all incoming calls be routed directly to the PBX voice mail. Theuser can request that a menu of options be played to the caller so thatthe caller can decide how to complete the call. The user can setseparate ring counts for the office telephone and remote device. Theuser can set dial tone options, which allows the user to control howlong a dial tone is played before a dial tone time-out occurs. The usercan adjust the time between dials. These are just a few of the userpreferences that can be stored and used by the WC 30, which can alterincoming and out going call processing. If the user does not change theuser preferences, or only changes a few preferences, system defaults areused.

When receiving an inbound DID call, call processing flow 200 (asillustrated in FIG. 4) is performed in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. At step 202, a DID telephone call is dialed by anexternal telephone device and received by system 10 through the PSTN. Ina preferred embodiment, PSTN has been programmed in advance to route allDID telephone numbers used by the system 10 to the WC 30. In addition,the PSTN has also been programmed to route calls incoming to the DIDtelephone number directly to the PBX 14 if the path to the WC 30 hasfailed. That is, the embodiment incorporates a failure path into thesystem 10 to ensure that a failure of the WC 30 or the PRI connectionbetween the WC 30 and the PSTN does not interrupt the operation of theoffice PBX network 11. This is possible since the steering table of theoffice PBX 14 contains the DID telephone numbers. The PBX 14 has thecapability to resolve these DID numbers. Thus, the PBX 14 can be used ifneeded to handle DID telephone calls. For purposes of this discussion,it is presumed that the WC 30 and the connection between the WC 30 andthe PSTN 54 are fully operational. Thus, at step 204, the PSTN routesthe DID call to the WC 30.

The WC 30 reads the ANI/DNIS information from the incoming DID call toobtain the DNIS information (step 206). The WC 30 resolves the call bydetermining what WC-PBX extension is associated with the telephonenumber identified by the DNIS. The WC-PBX extension, routing informationand user preferences are obtained by the WC 30 (step 208). At step 210,the WC 30 out pulses the PBX 14 through the PRI connection 22 betweenthe WC 30 and PBX 14 with the obtained WC-PBX extension. This causes thePBX 14 to ring the associated office telephone (e.g., telephone 12 a).At the same time (if desired), the WC 30 out dials one or more userdesignated remote telephone numbers via the PRI connections between theWC 30 and the PSTN 54. Therefore, the inbound DID telephone call isrouted to the office telephone and remote device simultaneously (or asdetermined by the user preferences). It should be noted that theillustrated processing 200 is just one example of how an incoming DIDcall may be handled.

At step 212, it is determined whether the current ring count exceeds themaximum ring count defined by the user. If the ring count exceeds themaximum ring count, then the WC 30 forwards the call to the enterprise'svoice mail (step 218). If the ring count does not exceed the maximumring count, the WC 30 determines whether the call is answered at the PBXextension (step 214). If it is determined that the call is answered atthe PBX extension, the WC 30 drops the call's path to the remotedevice(s) via the PSTN 54 and maintains the path to the PBX 14 (step220). If at step 214 it is determined that the call is not answered atthe PBX extension, the WC 30 determines if the call is answered at theremote device (step 216). In a preferred embodiment, it may be desiredthat the call to the remote device is actually answered by the user andnot by a service of the wireless carrier. Therefore, to distinguish auser answered call from a wireless service answered call, the WC 30 mayprompt the user to transmit a DTMF tone to the WC 30 via the remotedevice when the user answers the call. If the DTMF tone is not received,then the WC 30 preferably presumes that the call was answered by thewireless carrier, which is interpreted by the WC 30 as an unansweredcall. If at step 216 it is determined that the remote device wasanswered by the user, the WC 30 drops the path to the PBX 14 andmaintains the connection to the remote device (step 222). (As analternative, control and responsibility for the remainder of the callcan be left with the PSTN in order to free up PRI channels between WC 30and PSTN 54.) If the call is not answered at the remote device in step216, process returns to step 212 to check whether the ring count hasexceeded the maximum ring count.

Initially, the call processing reduces the processing load on the PBX14, since the WC 30 (and not PBX 14) is resolving the DID telephonenumbers. This allows the PBX 14 to handle call processing for moreextensions if desired. Additionally, since the WC 30 is resolving theDID calls, the WC 30 can out pulse the PBX 14 and out dial the PSTN 54simultaneously (if desired) without waiting for the PBX 14 toprocess/resolve the call. Moreover, as noted above, redundancy isprovided by allowing the PBX network 11 to function as a standard PBX ifthe WC 30 or the link between the WC 30 and the PSTN 54 fails.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment, WC 30 allows a remote devicesuch as a wireless telephone 70 to act as an office PBX telephone foroutbound telephone calls following call processing flow 300 illustratedin FIG. 5. That is, a user will be able to use its wireless telephone(or any remote device) to make station-to-station calls as if he wereusing an office telephone directly connected to the office PBX 14. Fromthe remote device, the user will also be able to perform other PBXfunctions as well. At step 302, a user places a call to the WC 30 fromthe remote device. One way for the user to do this would be to define aspeed dial key (or sequence of keys) on the wireless telephone handset.When the user activates the appropriate speed dial key/keys, thewireless telephone dials into the WC 30. Another way to dial into the WC30 would be by fixed dialing. Fixed dialing is a feature provided by thewireless carrier to always connect the wireless telephone to aparticular number or service, and, in this case, it would connect theuser to the WC 30. Any number of other methods may be used to dial intothe WC 30.

At step 304, the WC 30 reads the ANI/DNIS information received from theremote device to obtain the ANI information. The ANI identifies thetelephone number of the wireless telephone. The WC 30 uses the ANIinformation to obtain the wireless user's access rights and userpreferences (step 306). As noted above, a user is provided with theability to set various user preferences. The enterprise itself has theability to set access rights defining what type of calls the user canplace from the remote device (e.g., local, long distance, international,station-to-station, etc.). For example, if using PRI connections betweenthe PSTN 54 and the WC 30, the PBX 14 and the WC 30, and the PBX 14 andthe PSTN 16, users can be assigned into particular access groups byassigning each user to a particular channel or group of channels of thePRI. The user assignments can be stored in a database memory withinmemory module 320 of WC 30 for access during a validation orauthentication process performed by processor module 310. In thealternative, the responsibility over the user assignments can beincorporated into PBX 14 or some other (on-site/remote) equipment.

As is known in the art, in North America and Japan, for example, eachPRI contains 23 “B” channels that can be used for voice communications.Each B channel can be programmed with different calling capabilities bythe PBX 14. That is, some channels can be programmed for all types ofcalls (e.g., international, long distance, local etc.), others for longdistance and local calls, while others can be programmed solely forlocal or internal station-to-station calls. The channels can also berestricted to a limited number of authorized telephone numbers as well.The programming can be determined by the enterprise. Since the channelscan be programmed with different calling capabilities, the enterprisecan implement different access groups, with each group defining a user'sremote device access.

This feature significantly Limits the enterprise's remote device (e.g.,wireless service) costs because user access to services can besubstantially restricted. For example, the enterprise may want deliverypersonnel to have a wireless telephone for internal dialing purposes,but may be afraid of misuse by the personnel. Implementing the aboveembodiment, the enterprise can group all wireless telephones assigned toits delivery personnel to a channel(s) restricted solely to internalcalls. Any grouping is possible. Priorities may also be assigned. A userassigned to group 1 (programmed for all calling capabilities) may begiven priority to bump a user assigned to group 2 (having less callingcapabilities) in the event that the channels assigned to group 1 arebusy. Any grouping or priority scheme can be implemented by theenterprise and is application specific.

At step 308, the WC 30 “spoofs” a dial tone to the wireless telephone.That is, the WC 30 generates and transmits a dial tone to the wirelesstelephone 70 as if the user had picked up an office telephone 12 aconnected to the PBX 14. In a preferred embodiment, the spoofing of thedial tone is achieved by the WC internally generating the appropriatetone (e.g., through software or hardware modules). The dial tone is thenplayed to a wireless telephone as a prompt while waiting to receive DTMFdigits from the wireless user indicating the telephone number the userwishes to dial. At this point in the call process flow 300, the user isconnected to the office PBX and may access any of its standard features.For purposes of this illustrated embodiment, it is presumed that theuser wishes to place an outbound call at this time. At step 310, theuser attempts to place a call and the WC 30 receives the number dialedby the user. At step 312, the WC 30 determines if the user is authorizedto make the call. For example, the WC 30 checks the user's accessrights, and if the user is authorized to place the call, the call isrouted to the correct channel by the WC 30 based on user preferences,access rights and the channel definitions (step 314). If the user is notauthorized to place the call (i.e., the call exceeds the user's accessrights), the WC 30 performs unauthorized call processing (step 316).Unauthorized call processing may include playing a message to the userstating that the user does not have authority to place the call,disconnecting the call, or any other action desired by the enterprise.

If the user decides to place a station-to-station call, for example, thecall would appear to be an internally dialed call at the destinationoffice telephone. For example, if the PBX 14 uses a different ring forinternal calls, then the internal ring would be sent to the officetelephone even though the call was made by the wireless telephone. Ifthe PBX 14 normally displays the PBX extension of the calling party onthe called office phone, then the PBX extension of the calling partywould be displayed on the called office telephone even though the callwas initiated by the wireless telephone.

Many enterprises have already provided wireless communications devicesto their personnel. These wireless devices already have existingtelephone numbers and are external to the enterprise PBX. Since thedevices are already in use by personnel and their clients, theenterprise does not want to change their telephone numbers. There is aneed to integrate these telephone numbers into the enterprise PBX. Oneway to integrate these telephone numbers would be to forward theirunanswered calls to the PBX voice mail. This can be accomplished by theinvention whether the wireless telephone number is associated with a PBXextension or not.

For example, the enterprise can purchase additional DID telephonenumbers from the telephone company (if necessary). These additional DIDtelephone numbers are stored in the database of the WC 30 together withspecial routing instructions to route all calls directly to a user's PBXvoice mail box (or other destination as desired). The user of a wirelesstelephone can program the wireless telephone to forward unanswered callsto his associated DID telephone number. Alternatively, the user can havethe wireless carrier forward unanswered calls to the DID telephonenumber as well. This way, any unanswered call to the wireless telephonewill be forwarded to the WC 30, which resolves the DID and forwards thecall to the appropriate PBX voice mail box. Using this feature, thelikelihood is increased that the user will retrieve his messages sincehe can retrieve all of his messages through the PBX voice mail. Thisalso alleviates the need for the user to have a separate voice mailservice from the wireless carrier, which may reduce the cost of thewireless service.

The invention can be embodied in any number of different applications.One embodiment, for example, applies the invention to a hotel having alarge number of rooms with dedicated phones lines for each room toprovide a second or “virtual phone line” without routing additionaltelephone lines or other wiring to the room. Each room would have theoriginal hard-wired telephone extension that is connected to theenterprise PBX, as well as a wireless telephone associated with the PBXextension (integrated using the invention) serving as a second orvirtual telephone line. If, for example, a guest of the hotel were usingthe hard-wired telephone line for his personal computer, he could stillmake and receive calls through the PBX with the wireless telephone.Thus, the invention allows an enterprise to double its telephone lineswithout incurring the expense of additional wiring required to install asecond line for the hotel rooms.

Another exemplary embodiment involves application of the invention tofacilitate communications in enterprises that have large offices locatedin different parts of the country. Typically, these enterprises utilizeseparate PBX networks for each location. The separate PBX networks areoften connected together using tie-lines, so that one location can makea station-to-station call to the other location. That means person A atlocation A can contact person B at location B using the PBX networks.The call will be a long distance call, but the enterprise usuallynegotiates a discount rate with the telephone carrier for dedicated, lowrate long distance service. However, if person B is not in his office,person A will have to use other means to contact person B. Thistypically involves a call to person B's wireless telephone, which wouldbe an expensive long distance wireless telephone call. In thisembodiment, using a WC unit in location B, the office and wirelesstelephones associated with person B would ring simultaneously. If personB answers the wireless telephone, the enterprise will not incur anexpensive long distance wireless telephone charge. Instead, since the WCunit at location B is initiating the wireless telephone call, thewireless call will only be a relatively inexpensive local call to thepertinent wireless carrier. Moreover, if the enterprise can contractwith the wireless carrier to get unlimited local wireless telephonecalls, the charge to the enterprise would be even less. Where a WC unitis installed in both locations A and B, person A can also place the callfrom a wireless telephone (through the WC unit at location A) to personB, who can answer the call with a wireless telephone (through the WCunit at location B). That is person A and person B can communicatethrough their respective PBX networks even though person A and person Bare away from their offices when the call is placed.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication system 400 constructedin accordance with another embodiment of the invention. As will beexplained below, the system 400 overcomes many shortcomings of existingenterprise PBX networks, particularly those shortcomings that ariseduring and/or in disaster and disaster recovered situations. The system400 includes two telecommunication systems 10 a, 10 b constructed inaccordance with the embodiments of the invention described above withreference to FIGS. 1-5. That is, each system 10 a, 10 b includes awireless connection (WC) unit 30 a, 30 b connected with a respectiveconventional office PBX 14 a, 14 b, which are in turn in connection witha PSTN 54. Both systems 10 a, 10 b may also be connected to a large areanetwork (LAN), wide area network (WAN), the Internet 50 or any othernetworked communication medium. Although FIG. 6 illustrates that thesystems 10 a, 10 b are connected to one PSTN 54, it should beappreciated that the systems 10 a, 10 b may be connected to differentand multiple PSTN's if desired.

The first system 10 a is provided at a location A while the secondsystem 10 b is provided at a location B. Preferably, location A andlocation B are not in the same building. In an exemplary embodiment, thefirst system 10 a serves as a telecommunications infrastructure for anenterprise's office provided at location A (e.g., New York office),while the second system 10 b serves as a telecommunicationsinfrastructure for the enterprise's office provided at location B (e.g.,Los Angeles office). As described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5, theWC 30 a of the first system 10 a will contain a database of officeextensions (e.g., PBX extensions) as well as DID telephone numbers,WC-PBX extensions and one or more remote device telephone numbersassociated with a respective PBX extension. The system 10 a will alsohave the ability to store user preferences to control the manner inwhich telephone calls are routed to the extensions, remote devices orvoicemail (described above). All of the telephone numbers, extensionsand user preferences stored in the WC 30 a of the first system 10 a areassociated with extensions at location A.

Similarly, the WC 30 b of the second system 10 b will contain a databaseof office extensions (e.g., PBX extensions) as well as DID telephonenumbers, WC-PBX extensions and one or more remote device telephonenumbers associated with a respective PBX extension. The system 10 b willalso have the ability to store user preferences to control the manner inwhich telephone calls are routed to the extensions, remote devices orvoicemail (described above). All of the telephone numbers, extensionsand user preferences stored in the WC 30 b of the second system 10 b areassociated with extensions at location B. For the most part, the systems10 a, 10 b operate as described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5.

As part of the system's 400 disaster recovery processing, the two WCunits 30 a, 30 b, replicate each other's databases. That is, the firstWC 30 a, servicing the extensions at location A, receives a copy of thesecond WC's 30 b database so that it will have a copy of location B'sPBX extensions, DID telephone numbers, WC-PBX extensions, remote devicetelephone numbers and user preferences if needed (i.e., in the casewhere the WC 30 b becomes destroyed or inoperable). Likewise, the secondWC 30 b, servicing the extensions at location B, receives a copy of thefirst WC's 30 a database so that it will have a copy of location A's PBXextensions, DID telephone numbers, WC-PBX extensions, remote devicetelephone numbers and user preferences if needed (i.e., in the casewhere the WC 30 a becomes destroyed or inoperable).

As will be discussed below with reference to FIG. 7, if for some reasonthe infrastructure of the first system 10 a becomes destroyed orinoperable, the enterprise can reroute its entire internaloffice-to-office extensions and external DID telephone numbers throughthe second system 10 b with just a simple telephone call to the PSTNhandling location A's telephone service. The second system 10 b, inparticular the second WC 30 b, then functions to route calls to theextensions at both locations A and B. No extension or DID numbers needto be changed. This is accomplished with relative ease. The PSTNhandling location A's telephone service has been programmed in advanceto route the DID telephone numbers of location A to the first WC 30 a.If WC 30 a becomes inoperable, the PSTN servicing location A needsmerely to change the telephone number from the number associated withthe first WC 30 a (part of the inoperable system) to the telephonenumber associated with the second WC 30 b (part of the operable system).

Likewise, if for some reason the infrastructure of the second system 10b becomes destroyed or inoperable, the enterprise can reroute its entireinternal office-to-office extensions and external DID telephone numbersthrough the first system 10 a with just a simple telephone call to thePSTN handling location B's telephone service. The first system 10 a, inparticular the first WC 30 a functions to route calls to the extensionsof location A and location B. No extension or DID numbers need to bechanged. As noted above, the PSTN has already been programmed in advanceto route the DID telephone numbers of location B to the second WC 30 b(now part of an inoperable system). During the disaster, the PSTNservicing location B need merely change the telephone number from thenumber associated with the second WC 30 b (inoperable system) to thetelephone number associated with the first WC 30 a (operable system).

It should be appreciated that once the PSTN reroutes the DID telephonenumbers to the operable WC, for example, the first WC 30 a, the operableWC 30 a can perform the functions described above with respect to FIGS.1-5 for both enterprise systems 10 a, 10 b. The operable WC 30 a servesas a recovery server for the inoperable WC 30 b. Thus, users of theinoperable WC 30 b, will be able to receive and make telephone calls ona remote device, such as wireless telephone 70, in the manner describedabove via the recovery server (WC 30 a). The recovery server (e.g., WC30 a) could also implement an emergency voice mail system for theinoperable WC 30 b. The users of both systems 10 a, 10 b still will beable to modify user preferences through the Internet 50 or other networkconnection. For example, the user may wish to prevent the officetelephone extension from ringing since it no longer exists. Similarly,the administrator of the operable WC 30 a may choose to perform a globalchange to the rerouted user's preferences to prevent the missing officetelephone extensions from ringing, rather than having individual usersdo it themselves.

The replication of the databases (described below with reference to FIG.8) may be performed in any suitable manner. For example, the two WC's 30a, 30 b may transfer the database information over the Internet 50. Thedatabase information may also be sent through the PSTN 54 connection orby satellite communications via respective satellite equipment 402 a,402 b (FIG. 6).

By means of an example only, it is presumed that the infrastructure oflocation A has been destroyed by an act of terrorism or some otherdisaster, which destruction includes the building housing the system 10a and the offices of the enterprise. During the disaster and itsimmediate aftermath it is desirable for the employees of the enterpriseto maintain communications with the outside world (e.g., call for help,alert loved ones that they are safe, initiate disaster recovery steps,etc.). Since the now destroyed enterprise infrastructure contained a WC30 a backed up by a WC 30 b at another location, it is possible for theemployees to send and receive calls on their wireless devices once thesystem 400 initiates its disaster recovery processing.

FIG. 7 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary disaster recoveryprocessing 450 performed in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. The first act is to detect whether there has been a disasteror other occurrence at location A that has rendered the enterprise'stelecommunication system 10 a inoperable (step 452). Once detected, thenext step performed is to alert the PSTN 54 to reroute the DID telephonenumbers for location A to the WC 30 b of the second system 10 b. Itshould be appreciated that these steps may be performed by anadministrator of the system, who detects the disaster and then initiatesa call to the PSTN. It should also be appreciated that these steps maybe performed automatically by the PSTN. That is, when the PSTN attemptsto place a call to the WC 30 a, it can detect a busy circuit, circuitoverload, etc. an automatically reroute the DID telephone numbers forlocation A to the WC 30 b of the second system 10 b. This “automaticrollover” feature can be set-up with the PSTN at any time the enterprisedesires.

Once the PSTN 54 completes the rerouting, which may be a matter ofminutes depending upon the number of DID telephone numbers that need tobe rerouted, the location A external DID telephone numbers as well asits PBX and WC-PBX extensions, remote device telephone numbers and userpreferences will be in existence and handled by the second WC 30 b. Noneof the location A extensions or DID numbers will have been changed.Thus, the enterprise experiences minimal down time despite that factthat the disaster may still be ongoing (e.g., burning building). To theemployees and the outside world, the rerouting of the services goesunnoticed. In fact, once the disaster is over, the enterprise cancontinue to conduct internal and external communications as though theenterprise is still functioning at location A.

Essential to the aforementioned processing is the replication of thedatabases on the first and second WC's 30 a, 30 b. FIG. 8 illustrates inflowchart form exemplary database replication processing 500 performedin accordance with an embodiment of the invention. For this example, itis presumed that the first WC 30 a located at location A is performingthe processing 500. It should be appreciated, however, that both WC 30 aand WC 30 b perform the processing 500. Initially, the first WC 30 achecks its internal time (step 502). At step 504, the first WC 30 adetermines if it is time to update (i.e., replicate) databases. If it istime to update the databases, the first WC 30 a sends a copy of itslocation A database (step 506) to the WC 30 b at location B. It shouldbe appreciated that the first WC 30 a will have its main database forprocessing the location A telephone numbers and either a second databaseor a separate portion of its main database for storing the location Bdatabase information. Whether the WC 30 a uses a single large databaseor two smaller ones is a matter of choice for the enterprise.

Once the first WC 30 a sends a copy of the location A information to theWC 30 b, it receives a copy of the location B database information fromthe second WC 30 b (step 508). The information can be received in amessage transmitted over the Internet 50 or by satellite communications,or it can be received by file transfer protocol (FTP) or any othernetworked protocol. The system 400 can be designed such that theinformation may be copied from a shared memory device or server attachedto a network connection shared by the two WC units 30 a, 30 b, or by anyother method. Once the information is received, the first WC 30 aupdates its location B database (step 510). The first WC 30 a will thencalculate the next update time (step 512). The periodicity of thedatabase updates may be any time satisfactory to the enterprise. Itshould be appreciated that the databases can be copied in any manner andthat the invention is not limited to any particular method or means forthe replication.

It should be appreciated that the embodiments of the present inventionare suitable for governmental purposes also. For example, presume that agovernmental agency was under terrorist attack. Most likely, thegovernmental employees would be evacuated from their usual location. Itmay be necessary, however, to contact these employees or for theemployees to have access to the PBX network. If the governmental agencywas using a system 400 (FIG. 6) constructed in accordance with theembodiments of the invention, the employees would be able to conductbusiness as usual even though they have been relocated (via a recoveryserver, for example, WC 30). Most importantly, communications with keypersonnel will still be possible, which may be needed to launch countermeasures against the attack. Thus, the system 400 of the presentinvention provides a continuity of government even in the most drasticsituations.

It should be noted that the invention has been described as being usedduring a disaster or as part of a disaster recovery. Although this is amajor advantage of the invention, it need not be limited to suchsituations. For example, the invention can be used during any time thereis a need to bring down one of the PBX networks (e.g., maintenance),during a mere power failure or circuit overload.

The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6 can be used as a mechanism by alarge enterprise with several offices spread throughout the world tocoordinate several PBX networks into a single pseudo-network. Inaddition, these enterprises having more than one telecommunicationsystem 10 will have multiple telephone numbers to activate outbound callprocessing from remote devices (described above with reference to FIG.5) via the multiple WC's 30. It should also be appreciated that theenterprise's system 400 can be enhanced by the “intelligent routing”feature provided by most “800 number” service providers (see below).

That is, the enterprise can obtain a single toll free calling number(e.g., “800 number”) so that all of its employees can dial one number toaccess their appropriate WC unit. Intelligent routing is performed bythe service provider such that the appropriate WC unit is selected basedupon the location of the employee when she is placing the call to theWC. As long as all of the WC units of the enterprise have replicatedeach others databases, then it becomes possible for an employee whoseoffice is at location A to access the WC located at location B becauseshe happens to be at the location B office. This allows the user to getthe benefits of the location A wireless connection unit/PBX network witha local call even if she is thousands of miles away from location A.

FIG. 9 illustrates in flowchart form exemplary remote outbound callprocessing 550 performed in accordance with another embodiment of theinvention. The processing begins when the user places a call from aremote device to a WC via the toll free calling number (step 552). Thetoll free calling service provider determines the location of the user'sremote device and selects the telephone number of the nearest WC andconnects the user to that WC (step 554). Once connected, the processing550 performs the processing 300 described above with reference to FIG.5. Thus, is it is possible to coordinate multiple WC units andtelecommunication systems for use with intelligent routing.

Some enterprises that have PBX networks do not have branch offices orbuildings provided at multiple locations as illustrated in FIG. 6. Otherenterprises that have multiple offices at different locations may notwant to tie their PBX networks together (as such, this enterprise doesnot have a location B either). For purposes of the followingdescription, these enterprises are referred to herein as “singlelocation” enterprises. It is desirable for the single locationenterprises to have the ability to perform disaster recovery in theevent that its PBX network becomes inoperable, overloaded, etc.

Referring again to FIG. 6, one way to provide the aforementioneddisaster recovery processing to the single location enterprise is toprovide the enterprise with a modified system 400. The modified system400 comprises a telecommunication system 10 a constructed in accordancewith the embodiments described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5, butdoes not contain the second telecommunication system 10 b. Rather, theenterprise will maintain and have access to a second WC unit 30 b thatwill serve as a dedicated fail-over box as described below.

The single location enterprise will own and operate the system 10 awithin the premises of the enterprise (e.g., location A). This system 10a includes a WC unit 30 a and other components illustrated in FIG. 6.The system 10 a may be connected to a PSTN 54 and/or a network such asthe Internet 50. In the current embodiment, the single locationenterprise does not have a location B. To compensate for this, theenterprise can have its second WC unit 30 b connected directly to atelephone company or PSTN. This second WC unit 30 b can be locatedanywhere in the world as long as the WC unit 30 a of the system 10 a hasthe ability to send its database to the second WC unit 30 b (e.g.,described above with reference to FIG. 8, except that the first WC unit30 a does not need to copy the database of the second WC unit 30 b).

Once the second WC unit 30 b has a copy of the first WC unit's 30 adatabase, disaster recovery processing 450 can be performed as describedabove with respect to FIG. 7. As such, the single location enterprisecan perform disaster recovery of its telecommunication system 10 a byhaving a dedicated fail-over box (e.g., second WC unit 30 b), serving asa recovery server, and performing the processing 450 illustrated in FIG.7.

Some single location enterprises, such as mid-sized businesses, may notwant to maintain a dedicated fail-over box. These enterprises mayoperate a telecommunication system 10 a to gain the advantages describedabove with respect to FIGS. 1-5, but may wish to avoid the added expenseof a second system 10 b or second WC unit 30 b. It is desirable,however, for these “mid-sized” single location enterprises to have theability to perform disaster recovery in the event that its PBX networkbecomes inoperable, overloaded, etc.

One way to provide the aforementioned disaster recovery processing tothe mid-sized single location enterprise is to provide the enterprisewith a telecommunication system 10 a constructed in accordance with theembodiments described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5 and access to aservice bureau designed to replicate the enterprise's database and serveas a WC unit for the enterprise in the event of a disaster. That is, theservice bureau maintains a recovery server for the enterprise. Thus, themid-size single location enterprise will own and operate a single system10 a without additional WC units 30 b, but will still have the abilityto perform disaster recovery.

Referring to FIG. 10, a service bureau provides a “hosted serice” 600 toan enterprise by providing a WC unit that is accessible to theenterprise (step 602). It should be appreciated that the service bureaucan provide one or many WC units depending upon the amount ofenterprises the bureau is supporting. The service bureau enters into acontract with the enterprise (step 604). The parties contract that theservice bureau will allow the enterprise to send a copy of its databaseto the bureau's WC unit at a predetermined periodic interval (e.g.,daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) for a predetermined service fee. It shouldbe noted that the service bureau can establish a fee schedule based onthe size of the enterprise's database, the frequency of thepredetermined periodic interval, or based upon any other businessrelated reason.

Once the enterprise contracts with the bureau, the bureau provides theenterprise with access to its WC unit so that the enterprise can sendthe bureau its database (step 606). The enterprise will also have theability to configure user preferences and disaster recovery preferencesas described above with reference to FIGS. 1-9. Once the service bureauhas a copy of the enterprise's database, disaster recovery processing450 can be performed as described above with respect to FIG. 7. The lonechange is that in step 454, the location A telephone numbers are routedto the WC unit of the service bureau. As such, the mid-size singlelocation enterprise can perform disaster recovery of itstelecommunication system 10 a without having additional hardware such asa dedicated fail-over box (e.g., second WC unit). It should beappreciated that the service bureau can charge an additional fee duringthe time that the bureau's WC unit is servicing the enterprise'stelephone calls (i.e., during the disaster, circuit overload, etc.).

Some single location enterprises, such as small businesses, may not wantto own a WC unit at all. These enterprises may be too small to gain allof the advantages of operating a telecommunication system 10 a describedabove with respect to FIGS. 1-5. The small-sized enterprise operates astandard PBX network without a WC unit. Despite their size, it isdesirable for these small-sized single location enterprises to have theability to perform disaster recovery in the event that its PBX networkbecomes inoperable, overloaded, etc. That is, it is desirable for theseenterprises to have access to a recovery server (i.e., WC 30) when theneed arises.

One way to provide the aforementioned disaster recovery processing tothe small-sized single location enterprise is to provide the enterprisewith access to a service bureau designed to serve as a WC unit for theenterprise in the event of a disaster. In the event of a disaster, theenterprise has its PBX and DID telephone numbers routed to the servicebureau's WC, which then acts as a WC unit for the enterprise. Thus, thesmall-size single location enterprise have the ability to performdisaster recovery even though it does not have its own WC unit.

Referring to FIG. 11, a service bureau provides a service 650 to anenterprise by providing a WC unit that is accessible to the enterprise(step 652). It should be appreciated that the service bureau can provideone or many WC units depending upon the amount of enterprises the bureauis supporting. The service bureau enters into a contract with theenterprise (step 654). The parties contract that, for a fee, the servicebureau's WC unit will contain a database of telephone numbers for theenterprise in the event that the enterprise's PBX network becomesinoperable. The fee can be a monthly charge or a one time fee formaintaining the database.

Once the enterprise contracts with the bureau, the bureau provides theenterprise with access to its WC unit so that the enterprise can programthe bureau's database (step 656). The enterprise will also have theability to configure user preferences and disaster recovery preferencesas described above with reference to FIGS. 1-9. Once the service bureauhas a copy of the enterprise's database, disaster recovery processing450 can be performed as described above with respect to FIG. 7. The lonechange is that in step 454, the location A telephone numbers are routedto the WC unit of the service bureau. As such, the small-size singlelocation enterprise can perform disaster recovery of itstelecommunication system 10 a without having any additional hardwaresuch as a WC unit or dedicated fail-over box. It should be appreciatedthat the service bureau can charge an additional fee during the timethat the bureau's WC unit is servicing the enterprise's telephone calls(i.e., during the disaster, circuit overload, etc.).

Thus, the present invention offers disaster recovery to an enterprisedepending upon its size, financial well-being and desired capabilities.For example, the enterprise has the option of owning or renting all ofthe equipment required so that it may perform disaster recovery on itsown and with little outside intervention. The enterprise may own some ornone of the necessary equipment and contract with a service bureau sothat the bureau provides recovery equipment when needed.

It should be appreciated that the system 400 illustrated in FIG. 6 couldalso include spare satellite trunks connected to one or both of thetelecommunication systems 10 a, 10 b. This would provide the system 400with another method for communicating with remote devices associatedwith the enterprise's network (i.e., satellite telephones). It shouldalso be appreciated that the system 400 (FIG. 6) could utilize “voiceover IP” communications (i.e., voice over a data network) withappropriate remote devices. Many of today's wireless telephones have theability to place and receive cellular and data (voice over IP) telephonecalls and to access the Internet or other data network. Theseconventional remote devices could be used with the system 400.

FIG. 12 illustrates a system 800, that is similar to the system 400 ofFIG. 6, with the exception that the illustrated system 800 includes twotelecommunication systems 810 a, 810 b having satellite trunks 820 a,822 a, 824 a, 820 b, 822 b, 824 b for communicating with satelliteremote devices such as satellite telephones 830 a, 832 a, 834 a, 830 b,832 b, 834 b. The telecommunication systems 810 a, 810 b are constructedin accordance with the embodiments of the invention described above withreference to FIGS. 1-5, but are also programmed to respectivelycommunicate with the satellite trunks 820 a, 822 a, 824 a, 820 b, 822 b,824 b when needed. The systems are also programmed to respectivelycommunicate with remote devices 840 a, 842 a, 840 b, 842 b using voiceover IP or other data network communication technique. Thus, the system800 allows users of an enterprise network to communicate with cellular,data network, satellite communication and other wireless devices as ifthese devices where part of a PBX network, even when the enterprisenetwork becomes destroyed or otherwise inoperable.

Current methods of determining employee status, whether during anemergency or other enterprise situation, rely on a human calling tree.That is, a high ranking official places a call to immediate subordinatesto determine if the subordinates are present, safe, and able tocommunicate over the existing enterprise network. The subordinates, inturn, each call their respective subordinates and then return theirsubordinates' status information back up the calling tree. An example ofa calling tree is illustrated in FIG. 13 a. Employee A calls theemployees that report directly to employee A; in this example, employeeA calls employees B and C. Employees B and C will then call theemployees that report directly to employees B and C, respectively; inthis example, employee B calls employees D, E and F while employee Ccalls employees G, H and I. In the illustrated example, employee D wouldcall employees J, K and L.

The status of each telephone call would be routed back up through thetree as illustrated in FIG. 13 b. That is, employee D reports the statusof his calls to employee B. Employee B reports the status he receivedfrom employee D and the status of the calls employee B made to employeesD, E and F to employee A. Employee A gathers all of the information andmakes the best possible assessment of the situation that he possibly canbased on this information.

This human calling tree method has several shortcomings. For example, iffor some reason employee D is unable to communicate with employee B, thestatus of employees D, J, K and L will be unknown. Employees J, K, and Lmay be safe, unharmed, present, etc., but with employee D out of thetree, there may be no easy way to communicate their status up the tree.This problem would be compounded if employees J, K and L were requiredto place calls and determine the status of other subordinate employees(not shown). Furthermore, since employee A would not receive any statusfrom employees D, J, K and L, employee A could not isolate the problemor resolve the individual status of all of these employees. Moreover,using existing enterprise networks (i.e., network with a WC unit),employee A cannot determine, with out further efforts, whether theemployees are injured (i.e., critical situation requiring medicalattention) or whether a portion enterprise network is down (i.e.,non-critical situation requiring technical attention). In a disasterscenario, the uncertainty could cause more problems such as, forexample, dispatching emergency medical personnel to the wrong locations.

The system 400 (FIG. 6), system 800 (FIG. 12), or any other systemconstructed in accordance with FIGS. 1-12, on the other hand, has thecapability of determining the status of all individuals as well as thephysical structure and functionality of the enterprise network in aninteractive manner. That is, the present invention can use multiplecommunications methods (e.g., cellular, voice over IP, satellitecommunications) in order to contact employees. This not only increasesthe likelihood that the employee can be contacted, but it can also helpisolate any problems with the enterprise network (e.g., no cellularservice). In addition, the status of the employees and enterprisenetwork can be modified as the situation progresses based on furtherinteraction with the employees and other users of the enterprisenetwork.

For example, in the event of an emergency, an enterprise networkconstructed in accordance with the present invention can determine aninitial status of its employees by broadcasting a status inquiry messageto all employees at the same time. FIG. 14 a illustrates an examplebroadcast of a status inquiry to employees A through L. If theenterprise were using a system 800 (FIG. 12), for example, then thebroadcast could be made to the office telephones or the remote devices,either simultaneously or in sequence. Moreover, the broadcast could alsobe made to all remote devices including cellular, voice over IP, datanetwork, satellite and other wireless devices communicating with thesystem 800. Once the broadcast is made, the WC unit of the system 800inputs status information received from the employees as illustrated inFIG. 14 b. The WC unit analyzes this information, determines the currentstatus of the employees, and performs additional inquiries if needed.The information obtained could then be used to dispatch medical ortechnical personnel. These procedures can be fully automated if desired.

In one embodiment, the system of the present invention (e.g., system800) would broadcast a menu driven status inquiry in which the employeescould respond to the inquiry using menu options. The menus could begraphical menus on the remote devices capable of displaying graphicalinformation. Similarly, the menus could be voice activated or DTMFactivated for the devices capable of communicating via voice or DTMFsignals. The menus could follow the progression of the employee. Forexample, menu options could seek to determine if the employee is withinthe enterprise, if the employee needs assistance, if the employee hassubsequently left the enterprise, etc. The WC unit can use thisinformation to determine, which employees need assistance if any.

In addition, the WC unit can determine from the responses of theemployees which communications methods are operational to determine ifthere are portions of the physical enterprise network that are stilloperational or that need repair. If, for example, users in one wing areable to use their office telephones, but users in a second wing are onlyable to communicate with a remote device, the WC unit can determine thatthere is a problem in the second wing, but not the first. In the eventof a major disaster, one which requires the recovery server, the statusinformation can be used to determine which remote communication methodis the best one to use. For example, sometimes during a major disastercellular coverage may become disrupted. In those situations, the WC unitwould elect to communicate with other devices instead of placing callsto the cellular devices.

It should be noted that this capability is not limited to emergencysituations. That is, the broadcast status inquiry can be used as ageneral roll call to determine whether employees are in the office, outsick, on travel, etc. Likewise, the roll call can be used as a periodicroutine system maintenance tool to determine if any part of theenterprise network is not working.

Another embodiment of the invention implements priority preemption toany device associated with the WC unit used in the enterprise network.This includes any voice, data and/or satellite devices associated with atelephone number of the enterprise network. This allows priority usersto preempt existing communications and communicate with certainindividuals even though that individual is using a wireless telephone orother remote device. To implement this priority preemption feature, theWC unit must be programmed to recognize a special dialing pattern, datamessage or other input from one of the many devices that the highpriority user may be using. This unique pattern whether it is a dialingpattern, data message or other input is referred to herein as thepreemption signal. The priority preemption signal proceeds a telephonenumber in which the high priority user wishes to call. If the individualassociated with the telephone number is already on another call, thenthe priority preemption may be invoked as follows.

FIG. 15 illustrates exemplary priority preemption processing 900performed by an embodiment of the invention. The processing 900 beginswhen the WC unit detects a preemption signal and a dialed telephonenumber (step 902). The WC unit checks the preemption signal to determineif it is a valid signal (step 904). If valid, the WC unit uses thesignal to determine the priority of the caller, the individualassociated with the dialed telephone number, and if possible, thepriority of the individual on the active call (step 906). The WC unitcompares the priorities to determine if the person attempting to preemptthe call has the highest priority (step 910) and if so, breaks into theoffice telephone call, remote voice call, data session, satellitecommunication as applicable (step 914). Due to the flexibility of the WCunit, priority preemption may be implemented using DTMF, IVR, web basedor micro-browser communications.

If the person attempting to preempt the call does not have the highestpriority (step 910) or if the preemption signal is invalid (step 904),then additional call processing may be performed (step 912). Thisadditional processing may be a prompt, voice or text message or otheralert to the caller to indicate that the preemption cannot occur at thistime. The processing may also include a menu of options in which thecaller can choose to leave a message, try again, or merely hang up. Itshould be appreciated that priority preemption may be implemented in anymanner desired by the enterprise and that the invention is not limitedto the specific steps illustrated in FIG. 15.

Wireless data networks, such as the 80211 wireless LAN, are becomingincreasingly popular these days. Airport lounges, Internet cafes andother establishments offer the ability for users with data devicesand/or voice over IP devices to hook into its wireless data networks.This allows users to place a voice over IP call using the establishmentswireless data network. Some cellular devices are equipped, or may beequipped, with a device that can handle wireless data communications.Likewise, some wireless data devices may become equipped with a deviceor circuit for handling cellular communications. It is clear that thepresent invention allows for wireless cellular communications as well aswireless data communications with such devices.

In some situations, a user on a wireless cellular call may enter anestablishment with a wireless LAN. It would be desirable for thatcellular call to be switched to a voice over IP call using theenterprises' wireless LAN. This could reduce the cost of the call to theuser. Similarly, if the user was on a data call and exits the range ofthe wireless LAN, it is desirable to have that data call switched overto a cellular call. Currently, there is no technique for switching acellular call to a data call or to switch a data call to a cellularcall. The present invention on the other hand has such a capability.

For example, an inbound call to an office extension can be routed to auser's remote device (as discussed above with respect to FIGS. 1-5).Presuming that the remote device has cellular communications ability andthe user's preferences are set such that the call can be routed to theremote device, the inbound call is routed to the cellular device via acellular telephone call. If during the duration of this call the userenters a room, establishment or other area having a wireless datanetwork (e.g., 80211 wireless LAN), the invention can switch that callover to a data device (or if the user's remote device has a datacapability, the call may be switched to the data capability of theuser's remote device).

This seamless switching between cellular and data communications isperformed as follows. Referring to FIG. 16, the processing 950 beginswhen a user's remote device is connected to a first wirelesscommunications service (e.g., cellular) by a WC unit in accordance withFIGS. 1-5 (step 952). At some point, one of the user's remote devices(or the same remote device) detects that a second communications serviceis available. This remote device alerts the WC unit that a secondcommunications service is available (step 954). The WC unit receivesthis alert and uses its databases to retrieve the user's preferences(step 956). The WC checks the preferences to see if it can switch thecall to the remote device communicating with the second communicationsservice (step 958). If the preferences allow the switch, the WC unitbridges the call to the second communication service (either to a newdevice or to the same device if it has the capability) (step 960). Ifthe preferences do not allow the switch, the WC unit does not bridge thecall.

It should be noted, that the processing can also take into account otherfactors when determining if there should be a switch over to the secondservice. For example, the WC unit may consider Quality of Service (QoS)information typically available from today's wireless service providers.That is, if the first communications has a better QoS, the WC unit candecide not to make the switch unless the user has a differentpreference. Similarly, the WC unit can make a switch to a device withthe better QoS if so desired.

It should be noted that a data service such as a voice over IP call canbe switched to a circuit or cellular device (or the cellular portion ofthe same remote device) once the user exits the range of the wirelessdata network. It should be noted that the foregoing processing canswitch between different physical devices or between the data andcellular capability of the same device. That is, the type of remotewireless device does not limit the invention. All that is required isfor the user's remote device(s) to be associated with a telephone numberregistered with the WC unit of the invention.

In a preferred embodiment, WC 30 is co-located with the enterprises'PBX14, but may also be centrally located in a remote location ordistributed among the many locations, or any combination of thesearrangements. Similarly, any WC 30 serving as a recovery server may beco-located with a PBX of the enterprise or service bureau, telephonecompany switch or wireless provider switch.

While preferred embodiments have been specifically described andillustrated herein, it should be apparent that many modifications to theembodiments and implementations of the invention can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the invention. For example, whilethe preferred embodiments illustrated herein have been limited to theprocessing of voice (packet or circuit switched) calls, it should bereadily apparent that any form of call (e.g., audio, video, data) may beprocessed through WC 30 to any communication device (e.g., cellularphone, pager, office/residential landline telephone, computer terminal,personal digital assistant (PDA), RIM device, etc.). The individualmethod steps of the exemplary operational flows illustrated in FIGS.3-5, 7-11 and 15-16 may be interchanged in order, combined, replaced oreven added to without departing from the scope of the invention. Anynumber of different operations not illustrated herein may be performedutilizing the invention. Moreover, the method steps may be performed byhardware, software, firmware or any combinations of hardware, software,firmware or logic elements.

In addition, while the illustrated embodiments have demonstratedimplementations of the invention using PBX-based communication systems,it should be readily apparent that the WC module may be connected(directly, indirectly, co-located, or remotely) with any other networkswitching device or communication system used to process calls such as acentral switching office, centrex system, or Internet server fortelephone calls made over the public switched telephone network, privatetelephone networks, or even Internet Protocol (IP) telephony networksmade over the Internet. It should be understood by those skilled in theart that the present invention does not need a PBX to operate or toperform any of the processing illustrated in FIGS. 3-5, 7-11 and 15-16.All that the invention requires is a properly programmed wirelessconnection unit.

It should be apparent that, while only PRI lines (e.g., between PBX 14and WC 30, between PBX 14 and PSTN 16) have been illustrated indiscussing preferred embodiments of the invention, these communicationlines (as well as any other communication lines or media discussedherein) may be of any form, format, or medium (e.g., PRI, T1, OC3,electrical, optical, wired, wireless, digital, analog, etc.). Moreover,although PSTN 16, 54 are depicted as separate networks for illustrationpurposes, it should be readily apparent that a single PSTN network alonemay be used in reducing the invention to practice. It should be notedthat the WC 30 could trunk back to the PBX 14 instead of being directlyconnected to the PSTN 54. The use of a commercial wireless carriernetwork (represented by wireless switch 58 and antenna 60) as describedherein may be implemented using one or more commercial carriers usingthe same or different signaling protocols (e.g., Sprint PCS and Nextel,etc.) depending on the communication devices registered with the system.

The modules described herein such as the modules making up WC 30, aswell as WC 30 and PBX 14 themselves, may be one or more hardware,software, or hybrid components residing in (or distributed among) one ormore local or remote systems. It should be readily apparent that themodules may be combined (e.g., WC 30 and PBX 14) or further separatedinto a variety of different components, sharing different resources(including processing units, memory, clock devices, software routines,etc.) as required for the particular implementation of the embodimentsdisclosed herein. Indeed, even a single general purpose computerexecuting a computer program stored on a recording medium to produce thefunctionality and any other memory devices referred to herein may beutilized to implement the illustrated embodiments. User interfacedevices utilized by in or in conjunction with WC 30 may be any deviceused to input and/or output information. The interface devices may beimplemented as a graphical user interface (GUI) containing a display orthe like, or may be a link to other user input/output devices known inthe art.

One counter terrorism aspect of the invention involves the ability ofmasking the location of a telephone user. For example, a person may callan agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at his officenumber. The FBI agent may pick up the call on his satellite or cellularphone. The transfer of the telephone call is accomplished seamless, andso the caller is unaware of the actual location of the FBI agent,allowing the FBI agent greater freedom of movement. Further, the FBIagent may initiate a telephone call from his cellular or satellitetelephone but spoof the calling location. This may be accomplished byentering an alternative caller identification number in the GUI, thusmasking the true caller identification. Both of these abilities may beuseful in protecting undercover agents involved in various interdictionactivities, such as counter terrorism.

Furthermore, memory units employed by the system may be any one or moreof the known storage devices (e.g., Random Access Memory (RAM), ReadOnly Memory (ROM), hard disk drive (HDD), floppy drive, zip drive,compact disk-ROM, DVD, bubble memory, etc.), and may also be one or morememory devices embedded within a CPU, or shared with one or more of theother components. Accordingly, the invention is not to be seen aslimited by the foregoing description, but is only limited by the scopeof the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:
 1. A method of switching a telephone call from acircuit-switched communication network to a data packet communicationnetwork, the method comprising: receiving, at a wireless connect unit,an incoming call for a user at a telephone extension of thecircuit-switched communication network; retrieving from a storage mediuma mobile telephone number for a wireless device associated with thetelephone extension; routing the incoming call to the wireless device;receiving from the wireless device a signal indicative that the wirelessdevice can handle the call on the data packet communication network; andbridging the call to the data packet communication network when thewireless connect unit determines that the call should be switched to thedata packet communication network based on user preferences associatedwith the telephone extension of the circuit-switched communicationnetwork.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said bridging comprisesbridging when the wireless connect unit determines that a quality ofservice would be improved by switching the call to the data packetcommunication network.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprisingbridging the call back to the circuit-switched communication networkwhen it is determined that the telephone call should be switched back tothe circuit-switched communication network.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising routing the call to a second wireless device whenbridging the call.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wirelessconnect unit is co-located with the circuit-switched communicationnetwork.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless connect unit isremotely located with respect to the circuit-switched communicationnetwork.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein said bridging is performedthrough a Public Switched Telephone Network.
 8. A telecommunicationdevice operatively connected between a circuit-switched communicationnetwork and a data packet communication network, comprising: a storagemedium comprising user profiles associate with telephone extensions ofthe circuit-switched communication network, each profile associated atleast one wireless device and user preferences to one of the telephoneextensions; a processor in communication with the storage medium, theprocessor for: receiving an incoming call for a user at one of thetelephone extensions of the circuit-switched communication network;retrieving from the storage medium a mobile telephone number for the atleast one wireless device associated therewith; routing the incomingcall to the at least one wireless device; receiving from the at leastone wireless device a signal indicative that the at least one wirelessdevice can handle the call on the data packet communication network; andbridging the call to the data packet communication network when thewireless connect unit determines that the call should be switched to thedata packet communication network based on user preferences associatedwith the telephone extension of the circuit-switched communicationnetwork.
 9. The telecommunication device of claim 8, wherein theprocessor is further adapted to bridge the call when the wirelessconnect unit determines that a quality of service would be improved byswitching the call to the data packet communication network.
 10. Thetelecommunication device of claim 8, wherein the processor is furtheradapted to bridge the call back to the circuit-switched communicationnetwork when it is determined that the telephone call should be switchedback to the circuit-switched communication network.
 11. Thetelecommunication device of claim 8, wherein the processor is furtheradapted for routing the call to a second wireless device when bridgingthe call.
 12. The telecommunication device of claim 8, wherein thetelecommunication device is co-located with the circuit-switchedcommunication network.
 13. The telecommunication device of claim 8,wherein the telecommunication device is remotely located with respect tothe circuit-switched communication network.
 14. The telecommunicationdevice of claim 8, wherein said bridging is performed through a PublicSwitched Telephone Network.